Marathon Weekend 2022

[Barca33Runner]

SAFD:

Based on never having stayed there, my top 3 right now would be: Poly, Wilderness Lodge, and probably Boardwalk, Beach Club, or Contemporary (Counting is hard). I’d like to stay at them all, but I don’t think finances will align with that plan.

I’ve had really good stays at all the resorts I’ve been at. Would happily go back to AKL, Riviera, POR, or Pop!. I can’t really picture returning to Riviera or AKL with their prices. We got amazing deals when we booked at them and those seem to be few and far between now. I don’t picture getting this view for under $250 a night again:


The only one I’ve stayed at that I wouldn’t necessarily head back to is AoA. We stayed in the family suites a couple times because of our group size; but the rooms felt very lived in and claustrophobic. The air circulation was not the best and, although it may have had the most theming of any room (we were in Nemo once and Lion King once), everything nice felt very surface level.

 

[HangWithMerida]

SAFD: I think @Herding_Cats has the right idea! In Cinderella’s Castle is a clear winner. But, for real, AKL. I love the theming, the animals right outside your balcony in the savanna rooms, the food. And the smell in the lobby is amazing!
I have yet to stay in Poly but it is definitely on my list.
Edit to add: Wilderness Lodge during Christmas. THe entire resort just feels cozy during the holidays.

 

[dobball23]

SAFD: My three top choices...
1. AKL: I've never stayed here -- out of my budget -- but I make at least one trip here every time I'm at Disney World. My wife and I were making our tentative plans for Marathon Weekend and we had to rearrange them because we hadn't yet included time to be at AKL.
2. Polynesian: I love the Hawaiian vibe. And you can't beat the proximity to the monorail, TTC and Magic Kingdom. Plus some nostalgia as my family stayed here when I was just 7 years old.
3. Wilderness Lodge: I love the lobby and how it really feels like you're not in Florida.

For Marathon Weekend I'm not staying at any of these. We're at All-Star Music for two nights and POFQ for three night.

 

[FFigawi]

SAFD:
1. Poly - one of our favorites, especially during marathon weekend. The convenience of the monorail can’t be beat.
2. BC/YC - number two on our list for marathon weekend. The quick & easy drive to the race, the short walk back from DATW - who needs anything else?
3. AKL - everyone likes to watch animals meander around, right?

 

[1lilspark]

Safd
1) Poly
2) Wilderness Lodge
3 ) Boardwalk
Bonus points for Cinderella Castle

in the past have only stayed at the 3 all stars and Pop in my adult life but have stayed at CB and POFQ way back in the day (have POFQ booked for W&D pending they don’t delay reopening & AOA planned for MW)

 

[RunDopey]

SAFD:
1. CR: It was where we stayed for our first MW. Although it is not the newest or most themed resort, it is to me the quintessential WDW resort.
2. BC: Love the proximity to EPCOT and HS. The pool is fantastic and there is Beaches and Cream
3. Wilderness Lodge: We have never stayed there and our first planned visit was W&D 2020

Consolation prize for the Polynesian, as it is the resort that has the best personality.

We are staying at BC this year, to try a Crescent Lake resort for MW.

 

[Baloo in MI]

SAFD:
I have liked everywhere I have stayed, I mean it is Disney! But if I were to pick my top three:

1) Wilderness Lodge - love everything about it, so relaxing, National Parks vibes speak to my heart. And now that we finally succumbed to DVC it is our home resort! So excited for our stay there this Jan during MW.
2) Port Orleans French Quarter - love the theming, the beignets, parading alligators!
3) Pop Century - It is all about the nostalgia. First resort I ever stayed at. I like the running trail around the lake, skyliner, 80’s music. It will always be my first resort love! And it is kind to the wallet.

 

[MissLiss279]

SAFD:

I bought into DVC a couple years ago, so I haven’t tried too many of them yet, but I really would like to stay at AKL sometime. I love animals!
I was able to switch to BLT a few months ago for MW, so I am getting to try that out.
Otherwise I really like SSR, which I know is not most people’s favorites, but it just seems really relaxing to me which is nice for race weekends. Also, it’s close to DS for easy access to lots of restaurants.

 

[Naomeri]

SAFD:
I want to stay at Contemporary with a theme park view. My second choice is Beach Club, and I’m going to realize that dream for my December trip this year.

Honestly, I’ve been pretty happy with my stays at Pop, I just wish they’d have somewhere to sit and relax in the room that isn’t a bed.

 

[pluto377]

SAFD:
Favorites that I've actually stayed at - Poly and Beach Club. We got an amazing deal at Poly for 2010 Marathon weekend (I think it was like $200 a night!), but it was freezing that year so we never got the use the pool. So I hope to go back someday.

Places I want to stay- Wilderness lodge, Boardwalk (we'll be there for a family trip in March!) and Contemporary.

I'd also like to try each resort once, but deluxe prices these days are going to make that really hard...

 

[BigEeyore]

SAFD: We bought into DVC in 2008 so we have been pretty spoiled staying in deluxe villas - only DVC resorts we haven't stayed at are GF and Riviera, and of those Riviera appeals more. But here's my dreaming big list:
1) the Star Wars hotel (I know it's not open yet but we are dreaming here, right??)
2) One of the lakeside bungalows at the Poly
3) A villa at the Riviera with a view of Epcot

 

[DisneyParrothead]

SAFD: if budget isn’t an issue in this one, I’ll also choose AKL. I think it would be a lot of fun and totally different.

I’m booked at the Swan for marathon weekend since I live the Boardwalk area, and the Swan was about half the nightly rate than the others. Deal!

 

[Barca33Runner]

We ended up booking a rental property earlier today for Marathon Weekend 2022. Our group is indeterminate in size and will likely be coming in and moving out on different days. We also couldn’t find anything on property that compared favorably financially; all things being equal we like the convenience of on-site, but things were most definitely not equal this time.

We are also cutting out Friday and Saturday parks for sure this time, and possibly Thursday, as a result of realizing what the additional mileage was doing to our feet and energy the last few Weekends. Burning the candle at both ends is certainly possible, and often very fun, but we want to experience a Weekend where we aren’t constantly on our feet with somewhere to be for once. Going to try the private pool and hot tub wind down vs. 10 more miles at Epcot or HS method.

 

[JAMIESMITH]

SAFD: I would love to return to the Poly. We stayed there for our first family trip in 2012 and fell in love with the resort. I've also always wanted to try Wilderness Lodge. Realistically, we might be looking at staying at a moderate resort since prices are much higher now than they were when we started visiting the mouse.

 

[Cabius]

SAFD:

We are DVC owners at the Poly, and while I love a lot of the resorts (and recently had a GREAT experience in a CCV 2-Bed) I'm really looking forward to staying at the Poly for Marathon weekend!

In addition to it just being my favorite hotel, the location should make it really easy for my family to see me run. My wife will be-7-months-pregnant with two kiddos under 6, so having them get up early and catch a bus to cheer me on is a non-starter, but they can easily walk over to the TTC and then to the other side of the Poly, then catch a monorail down to Epcot to meet up after the finish line.

Other than the Poly, I would love to stay at Gran Destino Tower, or a Saratoga Springs Treehouse!

 

[Novatrix]

SAFD:

The family has been DVC members since 1992, and over the years I've stayed at 12 out of 21 resorts at Disney. Since "nothing new on race day" extends to what hotel to stay at, here are my top 3.

1. Beach Club Villas - My happy place is the lazy river at Storm-a-long Bay, I love the freestyle coca-cola machine and the iced coffee available in the morning for the reusable mugs and being able to duck in and out of EPCOT at a whim. Even with the watered down festivals of recent years, hanging out in EPCOT is my favorite activity. I have my fingers crossed that when we come out of COVID restrictions, one day Festival of the Arts with live Disney on Broadway performances will overlap with Marathon weekend.

2. Boardwalk Villas - Similar to Beach Club, I enjoy being able to duck in and out of EPCOT on a whim. The steam and sauna rooms at the gym are very nice, and I think it's a nice touch that they always have scented and non-scented chilled towels. Usually the DVC pool isn't too crowded so I can swim laps there. Easy walk over to Beach Club in the morning for breakfast and filling up my mug.

3. Old Key West - Welcome Home. I have so many memories wrapped up in this resort, it's hard to separate the nostalgia (up until 5 years ago, there were still people working at the resort who remembered me as a child!), but I still love how separate and quiet it is from the hustle and bustle from the rest of Disney. My favorite room layout of any Disney resort is still an OKW 1 bedroom, especially with the humungous balcony from which I often wildlife watch. I enjoy the number of quiet pools onsite, chances are you can always find your own private pool. I like getting take-out from Olivia's. When the boats were running, I always loved the ride to Downtown Disney and during the day I enjoyed the walk. There have been times that I'd be sent to jog over to Earl of Sandwich and bring back food for the family.

Least favorite from a race weekend perspective has been the Poly. Lake View + Light Sleeper + Race Nerves + Electrical Water Pageant do not make for a restful night of sleep. Also, I'm not fond of the Poly's policy of not letting you have access to the pools until you're assigned a room number, and immediately ending your access to the pools at 11am on your check-out day if you're checking into another Disney hotel. I enjoy visiting the resort, and I love all the restaurants and Trader Sam's. Who knows, as of right now Poly - Standard was the only resort that I could grab all the nights I needed for marathon weekend, maybe 3rd time will be the charm.

 

[Livelovedance]

I’m not sure if it’s a glitch, but some DVC rooms are showing as available for marathon weekend. I had to log in using a private window, and I got the 7 dwarves a couple times doing the search, but I was able to get the nights I needed to complete a reservation. I got the confirmation screen, the reservation shows up on my dashboard, but I haven’t received a confirmation email… I’m going to keep my previous one for now, just in case, but it’s worth a look if you need a night or two!

Edit to add: Just got my confirmation email! There are more rooms available than I realized, some with full availability! Someone on FB posted December rooms have opened up as well. Hope this helps someone!

 

[jmasgat]

@Livelovedance Wow. Just checked under my sister's account and there's lots of availability. Wish I had my own points to use!

 

[Herding_Cats]

Can someone check any studios from the 5th-10th? Or the 7th-10th?

found someone on the dvc section and got the 5th-9th! now to figure out that last night (which, honestly is the worst day for us to change resorts LOL)

 

[Livelovedance]

Can someone check any studios from the 5th-10th? Or the 7th-10th?

I just checked, but there’s no full availability in studios right now.